


MENT (Volume I)

by CaptainLeBubbles



Category: RWBY
Genre: (multiple ones actually), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Families of Choice, Gen, Major Original Character(s), Past Child Abuse, Prosthesis, Self-Indulgent, Team as Family, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2016-04-08
Packaged: 2018-05-28 15:14:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6333997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainLeBubbles/pseuds/CaptainLeBubbles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What they don’t tell you on the flier is that the bonds you form in Beacon will be the bonds that last you a lifetime- forged in fire and ice, from blood and sweat and tears and pain and hope and joy and celebration, four hunters-in-training find a family where they never expected to.</p><p>Canon-divergent au about a world where James and Qrow got to Emerald and Mercury before Cinder did, and Cinder never hired Roman and Neo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue (Trailers)

**Author's Note:**

> A full explanation can be found [here](http://wyomingsmustache.tumblr.com/post/141556036749/ment). Tl;dr: I played with the idea of a world where Cinder didn't get Merc and Emerald and it grew and I decided to write it and I hope you enjoy it but if you don't that's okay because this fic is about eight thousand percent self-indulgence.
> 
> This first chapter contains the four "trailers" I posted to my blog. It will be a few days before the actual chapters start getting up, I'm only posting this now so I can have the Ao3 link for the masterpost on my blog.
> 
> Neo's speech is formatted differently partially to highlight that she's using a different format for communication, and partially to make things easier for me later on when I have characters who switch between sign and speech.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the Team.

*

**Silver Trailer**

The day Mercury Black left for Beacon, he was surrounded by people who loved him. 

This was, even after almost two years, a very jarring experience for him. He was still wrapping his brain around the fact that he had a family at all, let alone one that had accepted him without question the day their uncle had brought him to them and said they were keeping him.

But Uncle Qrow (Mercury could not bring himself to call him father, not when the word and its variants still left a bad taste in his mouth) had been firm in that he would look after Mercury as long as he wanted him to, had taken him back to Patch to live with himself and his brother-in-law and his two nieces, and when the new term started at the training academy where he taught, Mercury had become a student at Signal Academy.

And for two years, that had been his life. And it had been good. Uncle Qrow had kept to his word and taken care of him, and despite the myriad of problems Mercury had presented him with Uncle Qrow had not seemed to regret his decision or his promise.

Yang and Ruby were going to Beacon too. Ruby was too young, but for some reason the headmaster had made a special allowance for her. Mercury wasn’t sure if this was a good idea- Ruby was so young and innocent, was it really fair to take away that two years of growing up she had before she was old enough?- but no one had bothered to ask his opinion, so he’d kept quiet on it. Uncle Qrow and her dad didn’t seem too bothered, at least.

“You kids stick together, now,” Uncle Qrow said. “Beacon can be overwhelming, especially your first couple of days there, but you’ve got each other so you’ll be fine. And if you need us, me or Tai’ll always be one of us at Signal- you’re not going that far, not so far as you think.”

“And if there’s anything you need just call us,” Uncle Tai said. “Or if you just want to talk. And if you get homesick we’ll come pick you up to spend a weekend with us, that’s completely allowed.”

“And even if it ain’t, Ozpin owes us both more favors than we can count, we’ll call one in for you.”

“We’ll be fine,” Yang promised. “We’ve got each other.”

Uncle Tai pulled his two girls to him for a private goodbye, and after a look asking permission Uncle Qrow threw an arm around Mercury’s shoulders and led him away. He’d been drinking- Mercury could smell it on him, just like always, but stronger this time. Mercury wondered if he’d been drinking because he and the girls were leaving. If it was because Ruby was leaving them early.

But the bitter edge to his expression wasn’t enough to push away the pride he obviously felt, and when he gave Mercury his usual cock-eyed grin it reached his eyes all the same. Mercury let some tension out of his shoulders.

“Ozpin’s already been told about your accommodations,” Uncle Qrow said. “He won’t ask questions and if anyone gives you any trouble you go straight to him or Glynda. And I wasn’t kidding about that favor, either- you need me, I’m a scroll away. Tai too, if you can’t reach me.”

“Okay.” Mercury leaned into him, and realized that he was almost as tall as Uncle Qrow now. When had that happened? When they’d met the other had seemed to tower over him. “And if I get to Beacon and change my mind?”

“Then you call me, and I’ll come get you,” Uncle Qrow said. His voice was firm- Mercury believed him, because Uncle Qrow had always kept to his word with Mercury. He knew how important it was that Mercury be able to believe what he said.

“Okay,” Mercury said again, and, “I’m not going to change my mind.”

“I know.” Uncle Qrow raised his hand and ruffled Mercury’s hair. There was fondness there. Mercury didn’t flinch away from his touch, the way he used to. Instead he leaned back into it, letting himself enjoy the affection. “But there’s no shame if you do.”

“Yeah. Thanks."

The hand on his head left, the arm pulled away. It would be time to board in a minute, and Uncle Qrow needed to say goodbye to his nieces. Mercury buried the bitter voice in his mind that whispered “his _real_ family”, and moved over to say goodbye to Uncle Tai instead. Uncle Tai didn’t hug him, but Mercury didn’t want him to. Instead he gave Mercury a smile- that tight smile that never quite managed to push away the grief in his eyes- and held out his hand. Mercury shook it, grateful. He was all hugged out for the day.

Then it was time to go, and Mercury joined Ruby and Yang in boarding the ship that would take them to Beacon. He looked back once he was on the ship- and his heart felt fit to burst when he saw how proud Uncle Qrow looked to see him going.

*

**Green Trailer**

On the day that Emerald Sustrai left for Beacon, her father was there to see her off.

He was not actually her father. He had taken her in two years ago, when she’d tried to pick his pocket and he’d caught her. And he had given her a home, sent her to school, bought her fresh, tailored clothes and made sure that she always had enough to eat, and he obviously cared about her and he never hurt her and when he scolded her or let his temper bubble too near to the surface he was always ready to put it right with a gentle word and a quiet reassurance. So maybe he wasn’t her father but it seemed to Emerald like she couldn’t really ask for better than him. It wasn’t like she’d ever known her real father anyway.

Besides, he was the headmaster of Atlas’s huntsman academy and the general of their army, and that was nothing to sneeze at, either.

“You’ll call me as soon as you get to Beacon,” he said. His voice was firm, and tight at the edges, but his eyes were warm and reassuring and sad all at the same time.

_He doesn’t want me to go_ , Emerald thought, and aloud, “Yes, of course.”

The stern edge of his expression softened a little. “Just so I know you got there safely,” he said. “It’s a long flight and anything can happen.”

“I know." She caught her arm in the other hand, and rubbed awkwardly at her elbow, looking away. _I’m not sure I want to go either_. “I’ll be fine.”

“Of course you will, you’re strong." His own arms were folded behind his back, and his shoulders square. A barrier between himself and his emotions. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t worry anyway.”

“I understand.” _I’ve never had anyone worry about me before_. “You worry about everyone.”

“Stick with Weiss,” he said, after a pause. He was dodging the comment- that was alright, it didn’t make it less true. “You two keep an eye on each other.” A wink, a soft smile. “Try to keep her out of trouble.”

“I will.” _As if anyone could_. “General?” She put a hesitant foot forward, opening her arms slightly. Warmth flooded his eyes, affection and regret rolled into one. He opened his arms in invitation and she stepped into his embrace, feeling the comforting blend of warm and cold that his body exuded when he wrapped his arms around her. She leaned her head on his chest and felt safe and loved. _This is what a father feels like_.

“Emerald?”

_I can hear your heartbeat._ “You know why I’m going, right?”

“I think so.” His hold tightened, gloved right hand coming up to rest on the back of her head. “You know why I wish you would stay?”

“I’m starting to get the idea.” _This is what a father is_. A few tears sprang to her eyes, and she turned to bury her face in his coat, letting them fall discreetly. _I wish I could stay_.

He held her for a few more minutes, until her tears stopped and she felt safe to pull away. There were a few tear-stains on the front of his coat but he paid them no attention, instead reaching out to rest his hands on her shoulders, ducking his head so that he could look her in the eye.

“You should go, you’re going to miss getting a good seat on your flight.” His hand brushed her cheek. “I know you’ll do well. I know you’ll make me proud.”

She nodded, throat suddenly too tight to speak, and took a step back, away from his touch and his comforting presence. She picked up her carry-on, then turned around, took a breath to steady herself, and half-turned back so she could wave at him, a broad smile plastered on her face. He waved back, and when Emerald got to the ship and made herself comfortable she looked out the window to see him still standing there, arms folded and shoulders square, staring off into the middle distance with no expression.

“Goodbye,” she murmured, and huddled down into the seat to feel miserable.

*

**Pink Trailer**

Neo Politan did not want to go to Beacon. 

She wanted to stay with Roman, because they were all each other had and they ought to stay together. But Roman needed to lay low after the Dust heist had failed, and insisted that it would be safer for both of them if he were alone. And Neo, he insisted further, would be safest at Beacon Academy, and so he’d done some hacking and gotten her placed on the roster.

The ship had arrived that would take her away. Neo hugged Roman, clinging to him. Who would have his back if she went away? Who would have hers?

“You’ve got everything you need?” Roman asked. Neo shook her head, and pressed words into the small of his back where her hands were holding him close.

_'I haven’t got you.'_

“Neo…” Roman brought his hands to her shoulders and held her at arms length. He leaned down so he could look her in the eye. “You know this is for the best. I can’t keep you safe while I’m in hiding, and at Beacon they can. It’s only for a little while- once we get everything sorted out I’ll send for you. It’s one- maybe two terms.”

_I don’t want to be a huntress_.

Roman looked horrified. “Oh good lord no,” he said. “And I don’t want you to be. Hunters die. But there’s no harm in having the training to be a huntress.”

_'What if I get eaten by a Grimm?'_

“You won’t.” His eyes softened, and he pulled her to him again. “You’re stronger than any Grimm and the hunters at least prefer that their next generation don’t get killed before they leave the gate. They’ll keep you safe for me.” He leaned his head on hers, blinking back tears. She felt one, then another land on her head anyway.

_'Will you miss me?'_ she spelled into his back.

His hold tightened. “Like the sky misses the sun on a cloudy day,” he reassured her. “Now it’s time to go.” He held her at arms length again. “Just keep your head down. Play the part of the eager young student- you’re a good actress. Don’t draw attention to yourself and don’t get involved in anything big. If you need anything, go to Junior- he’ll look after you, and he’ll find me if you need me.” A small, heartbroken smile. “Okay, Butterscotch?”

_'I’m not ready.'_

“Neither am I,” he sighed, and let his hands fall.

*

**Gold Trailer**

Thaddeus Goldplum did not have anyone to see him off when he left for Beacon.

He wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t like his parents had much to do with him anymore anyway. They’d said goodbye, at least, when he reminded them over breakfast that he was leaving today. Mother had even looked up from her coffee to bid him farewell and safe journey. It was way more than he had expected.

Anyway they probably would have embarrassed him if they’d been there. It was for the best, really, he decided, as he watched some of the other students being hugged and kissed and chided and reassured and just generally bothered by their parents while they waited to board. He heard a girl somewhere off to his left whine to her mother to stop fussing over her, and decided it was definitely for the best. He was independent- he didn’t need his parents to remind him to behave or ask if he had clean underwear or reassure him that he could call if he needed anything.

He didn’t board the ship yet, though. There was no reason to stay on the ground- it wasn’t like his parents were going to suddenly appear at the last moment, sweeping through the crowd to shout their goodbyes and apologize for being late. Why would they? They’d already said goodbye that morning.

He just didn’t feel like waiting on the ship, that was all.

He did board eventually, when the last calls were coming in, casting one last wistful glance over his shoulder that he would deny till his dying day before grabbing his carryon and approaching the ramp. This time he didn’t look back.

*


	2. Episode 1: This'll Be the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mercury and Emerald get off to a less than stellar start. Also, Neo makes a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the really fun things about writing this, especially for the first few episodes, is watching the episodes this follows alongside so that I can make sure events eventuate correctly. It's been awhile since I did a proper watch, and it's fun to see the things that I missed the times before. Not to mention that the animation quality of the first season makes me really appreciate the animation quality of the third.

Somewhere between take-off and landing Mercury got separated from Yang and Ruby. He didn’t mind- he could find them again easily enough, and anyway he could hear Yang’s excited chatter from a mile away. He gave that general direction an amused smirk, and turned toward one of the many enormous windows on the ship. He wanted a few minutes alone to enjoy the view.

It was astonishing. The forest on the grounds stretched out below them, a vast green carpet from this height. The lake and waterfalls were glittering in the high sun, and as they passed over the water he saw their ships reflected in the surface. The height made him a little dizzy, so he turned his attention to the school instead. It was magnificent, bigger than Signal by half again and gleaming even more than the water.

The groundskeepers must have been putting in extra hours to put that much polish on them, but all Mercury could do was wonder at what good repair the place was in- students at Signal tended to be a bit destructive, and that showed in the masonry despite the better efforts of the board. At Beacon, though, there wasn’t a brick out of place. Mercury doubted it was because Beacon students were less destructive than Signal students, given how many had only been Signal students the year before, and he was still following that train of thought when the ship landed.

He deboarded the ship with the other students, looking around for out-of-place masonry or chipped paint or fresh mortar or anything at all to suggest that the Beacon students were as rowdy as they were at Signal, and was jolted suddenly from his thoughts when he was pushed aside and a harsh voice shouted for him to _Watch where you’re going, asshole!_

He was in a defensive stance before he’d even processed what had happened, weight on one foot while the other was ready to raise as soon as he’d determined where the threat was coming from.

The source was an angry girl with green hair and red eyes, glaring at him, hands still up from pushing him. He had just enough time to take in how wide her eyes were, how tense her shoulders were, before in a breath she had shifted to a more aggressive posture, hands on her hips and stance wide. “Do you _mind_?” she snapped. “Some of us are trying to walk here.”

 _There is no danger here_. Mercury shifted his own posture, putting his weight on both feet. He snorted and brushed his bangs out of his eyes, then folded his arms over his chest and twitched his face into a cocky smirk. “Well excuse me, Princess,” he said. “I didn’t know you needed the whole courtyard.”

There was an explosion in the distance. They both paused to glance over, and then back to one another. The girl was giving him an unimpressed look, then reached into her front pocket and took out a folded bill. “I will _literally pay you_ to shut up and get away from me,” she said. “This money _could_ be yours, if you _go away_.”

“Hmmm…” Mercury made a great show of considering it, then leaned down so that they were eye level, and winked. “ _Nope_.”

This earned him a snarl, and then the girl spun on her heel and stormed off, fuming. He saw a boy in a yellow bowtie staring at them, and grinned. “She wants me,” he said, and shoved his hands into his pocket to stroll after her, whistling cheerfully. He was a good ten feet behind her, and he wasn’t bothering her, but it pleased him to see that she was clearly annoyed by his presence.

Now to find Yang and Ruby, and see how their arrival had gone.

*

He found Ruby first, walking on the grounds with a blond boy wearing armor over a black hoodie. She introduced them- the boy’s name was Jaune- and the three made their way into the school together. Mercury told Ruby about his encounter with “Princess Thin-mint”, as he had dubbed her, while Ruby told him about accidentally exploding a snooty girl in the courtyard. She looked so dejected that he threw an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him with a reassuring noise.

“Don’t let it get you down, Rubbles,” he said. “It’s their problem, not ours.”

It didn’t seem to help much, so Mercury instead swapped to talking about the lack of damage on the grounds, and by the time they managed to find Yang he had both Ruby and Jaune in fits of laughter from his rant about frustratingly good architecture.

“I’m going to destroy a fountain,” he said. “Just to see how they handle it. What do you think?”

“I think you’re going to get in trouble,” Jaune said, wary, at the same time that Ruby said, “If they ask, tell them you were swatting a fly.”

*

By the time Emerald had managed to ditch the boy in the courtyard, she was tingling with rage and barely suppressed profanities. She decided to find Weiss and see how the other was settling, but only managed to get more annoyed when she realized the girl was nowhere to be found. She folded her arms over her chest and fumed as she made her way through the school. She was regretting her decision to come to Beacon more and more every day.

“Hey!”

Emerald came to a halt at the call behind her, and turned to see a tall kid with purple hair running up to her. “Hi there,” they said. “I’m Hector. You’re new too, right?”

Emerald eyed the hand being held out to her, and shook it with a nod. “Emerald,” she said. “And yeah.” She carried on walking, and Hector fell into step beside her.

“I’ve managed to get completely lost,” Hector said, while they walked. “I was looking for the dining hall, it’s nearly time for dinner and I’m starving.”

“I think it’s this way,” Emerald said. “And now that you mention it I’m getting pretty hungry too.”

They managed to find the dining hall eventually, Hector keeping up a steady stream of chatter while they walked. Emerald didn’t like it- she liked quiet, or at least less talking than Hector did, so when they reached the dining hall and she spotted Weiss, she made an excuse and hurried away, leaving Hector to stare at her in shock.

*

Neo was not enjoying her arrival at Beacon. There was no one around who knew sign, so she couldn’t join her new classmates in getting to know one another, even if she did care about meeting them. True, she could just use her scroll, but it was so tedious- sign was easier. It made her miss Roman even more. She wondered where he was, and if he’d managed to get underground yet.

She sighed, and sat down on a bench to feel sorry for herself. She’d barely been there for a moment than a small girl with puffball pigtails and a red cape sat beside her. “Hello,” the girl said. She gave Neo a sympathetic look. “New?”

Neo nodded and toed at the ground. She wondered if it would be worth the trouble of taking out her scroll to tell the girl to leave her alone.

“I’m Ash,” the girl said. “What’s your name?”

 _‘Neo,’_ she signed, and waited for the girl to cut the conversation short when she couldn’t understand what Neo was saying. Instead the girl tilted her head slightly and smiled.

“Neo? That’s a pretty name.”

Oh. Neo paused. _'Are you a first year student too?’_

Ash shook her head. “Second year, on Team BRLS. Do you need me to sign too?”

_'No, I can hear fine.’_

“Okay, cool. Do you have any questions about Beacon? I remember how lost I felt when I first got here, I could have really used a friendly older student to help me out.”

_'Is that why you’re helping me now?’_

“Of course.” Ash smiled, and rested a hand on her shoulder. “So is there anything you need?”

Neo pursed her lips thoughtfully, and then nodded. She had lots of questions, and finally someone who could help her find her way around. It would be smart to take advantage of that.

With Ash showing her around, it was much more pleasant. As much as she didn’t want to be here, she could tell that there were worse places to be. And at least there was one person she could talk to, and Ash assured her that there were others, too, and promised to introduce her later.

“I know it’s scary, leaving home and coming to a brand new place where you don’t know anybody,” Ash said, when they were ready to part ways. “But Beacon is great and in time you’ll know lots of people, and it won’t seem scary at all.”

Neo suspected this was only true of students who actually wanted to be at Beacon, but she didn’t bother telling Ash this thought. Instead she smiled and made a showing of being relieved, and then went to join the other first years for their assembly.

*

They were all going to be sleeping in the ballroom, all of the first years anyway. They couldn’t be assigned dorms until they had been assigned teams, and they wouldn’t be assigned teams till tomorrow. Thad wished they’d just go ahead and assign them when they arrived- what were they waiting for, anyway? It would be so much easier on everyone involved if they could change in the privacy of their own dorms.

Thad stood outside the boys’ changing room, watching the other boys come and go. There were far, far too many. He’d have to wait around until the room was empty to change into his pajamas.

“Are you body shy too?”

Thad jumped, startled, and turned to find a tall boy behind him, with shaggy red hair and dressed in several layers of clothes. He hugged his arms over his chest and peered up at the boy. “I don’t like changing in front of other people,” he admitted.

The boy nodded, picking absently at the long sleeve of his undermost shirt. “I feel that,” he said, and, “I’m Titus. Let’s go sit down while we wait. If we do that it’ll look like we just lost track of time.”

“Good plan,” Thad agreed. They moved over to an out of the way corner. “I wish we had dorms already. At least then I could have somewhere private to change.”

“Well, there’s still your team to consider,” Titus said. “But you could kick them out long enough for you to change if you had to. Easier if you get three girls on your team, cause then you can cite propriety- or so I would guess.”

“You think?”

“I mean, I don’t _know_. But I can imagine. Do you know how they decide the teams?”

“No idea.” Thad shrugged. “Maybe they’ll pair us down the roster?”

“I doubt it’d be that simple,” Titus said. “Otherwise they’d just do it tonight.”

“Well even if they did it would take time to get everyone their room assignments. Maybe that’s why they leave it.”

“Anyway if they were going to do that they’d just do it before everyone got here, so that’s probably not it. Maybe we have to draw a number or something.”

“Maybe…”

It didn’t sound right. Thad frowned and leaned back in his chair, staring up at the high ceiling. It seemed to him that the best way to determine the teams was to make sure everyone had someone they worked well with, but how did they decide it? A demonstration of their abilities? A questionnaire? Maybe a meet-and-greet? It just didn’t make sense.

He and Titus stayed talking for awhile, until slowly the changing room emptied out. Thad let Titus shower and change first, then bid him goodnight while he went in himself. He was going to be awhile, and didn’t want to leave the other boy waiting too long.

Once Titus had gone, Thad pulled the door closed and locked it behind him, then undid the buttons on his greatcoat and let it fall. He rolled his shoulders with a heavy sigh- as much as he loved his coat, and as useful as it was for hiding things he didn’t want seen, it could be a pain to wear for long. His pants followed, and within moments he was down to just his underwear. For several long minutes he just sat there on the changing room bench, reveling in the feeling of being bare. How lucky those other boys were, to be able to do this when there were others around.

Eventually, though, he reached for his greatcoat and rummaged into the pocket for his travel toolkit. As nice as it was to sit bare like this, he was tired, and the sooner he got the nightly maintenance done on his arm, the better.

*

Mercury lay dozing while he listened to Yang and Ruby talking, only interjecting his own comments occasionally. He was waiting for the boys’ changing room to empty out so he could do his nightly maintenance without anyone gawking at him (or, as happened just as often, becoming suddenly unable to look in his direction) but the bowtie kid from earlier had gone in and was apparently taking his own sweet time. Mercury had just about made up his mind to go in and kick him out when he heard a shrill voice telling Ruby off for talking too loudly, and he sat up to glare over in the direction of the source.

The source was the white-haired girl who’d been yelling at Ruby at the assembly earlier, and when she saw Mercury glaring at her she gave him a snooty look. “What are _you_ looking at?”

“Jury’s still out on that one,” Mercury said, as haughty as he could. “See I was thinking 'maybe that’s a talking shrew’ but shrews are kind of cute, so that rules that out.” He smirked, and reached up to tap his chin thoughtfully. “And then I thought, could that be a banshee? But then I didn’t want to insult banshees so…”

Beside him, Yang was trying not to laugh, while Ruby held up her hands placatingly and begged them not to argue. He just brushed his bangs out of his eyes and folded his hands behind his head, looking the girl (what had Ruby called her? Weiss?) over, making a great show of this.

“How dare you! Do you know who you’re talking to?”

“I figured it out!” he said. “I’m looking at a _brat_.”

“Hey!” The green-haired girl from earlier had joined them. “What is your _problem_? Do you just _enjoy_ being rude to people for no good reason?”

“He was only sticking up for me,” Ruby said, glancing around frantically. People were starting to stare, and there had been more than one call for them to shut up and let everyone sleep. She half-turned to him. “Mercury, please, let’s all just quiet down and go to bed.”

“Heh. Well soon as Ice Queen here apologizes to you I will. And an apology for me wouldn’t go amiss either, Princess,” he added, turning his attention to the girl.

“ _Me_? Apologize for _what_?” She adopted a simpering tone. “Oh, yes, I’m so _sorry_ that you _ran into me_! How could I have ever let that happen?” She sneered. “Fat chance.”

“Try 'I’m sorry for attacking you out of nowhere’.”

“You were about to run me over! Maybe if you’d watch where you were going it never would have happened!”

“That is enough!”

Mercury’s retort died on his lips at the same time the argument beside him stopped too, as the door was thrown open and Professor Goodwitch stormed in. She looked furious. “I don’t know what this argument is about, but I’m putting a stop to it.”

She separated them after that, sending them to five different parts of the ballroom and ordering them to go to sleep. They laid out their bedrolls in their new locations meekly, though when Mercury looked over at the green-haired girl she looked furious, and when she caught him watching her she sent him a death glare that sent a shiver down his spine. He blanched and burrowed into his bedroll, and only once he’d made himself comfortable did he realize he’d never gotten around to changing into his pajamas or running his nightly maintenance.

Oh well. He’d just be extra thorough in the morning.

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BRLS (Borealis) are some oc's I made awhile back, and decided to implement into MENT when I realized they fit perfectly into a role I needed filling. You'll meet the other three members of the team over the course of the first volume. [This](https://40.media.tumblr.com/a785c6340c3c9672431dec8553ee07db/tumblr_o1ky19lDSg1up77gpo1_400.png) is Ash; I'll link to the others as they're introduced.
> 
> Hector and Titus are part of a team my girlfriend and I spent yesterday and today designing, and will also figure heavily in the story. Their other two teammates will be introduced in Episode 2, after which I will post the picture Cili did of them. I love them and I hope the rest of you will too.


	3. Episode 2: Landing Strategy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emerald and Mercury make amends. Also, Thad and Neo get off to a good start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my favorite things about writing this!Mercury is finding all the little ways that Qrow has rubbed off on him in the past two years. Emerald has picked up some mannerisms from James, but not to anything like the extent that Mercury picked up from Qrow. It's hilarious and also really cute.

Emerald had about three seconds after she realized her launch-pad was next in which to reconsider her life choices before the ground had vanished and she was in the air, the forest a mere carpet below her. She grabbed her guns and fired downward to slow her descent somewhat so that she could find a good place to land; in the distance, she could see her classmates doing similar, could hear their shouts, cries, and, in one case, whooping as they found the ground coming up far too soon.

She heard gunfire crack near her and looked around to see the silver-haired boy who’d been annoying her yesterday. He was firing shots from his greaves, using them to almost bunny hop down to the forest below them. He spotted Emerald and she saw the exact moment that he realized what was already dawning on her as well: they were going to land together, or at least pretty near to one another. She saw him desperately attempt to launch himself away from her and wished him luck; she didn’t want to get stuck with him as a partner any more than he wanted her.

In the meantime, she was approaching the treetops at an alarming clip. She unfolded the blades from her guns and caught them on the first branch she came to, swinging herself around so that she could wall-jump on trees and branches until her feet touched the ground. She landed in a roll, then stood up and brushed herself off casually. That wasn’t so bad.

 _The first person you lock eyes with_ , Ozpin had said. Well, she could rig that pretty well. If they couldn’t see her, they couldn’t lock eyes with her, right? She ran over the roster as she’d seen it yesterday, trying to decide who would make a good partner. Weiss she immediately ruled out- she liked the girl well enough, and was glad to have someone she knew at Beacon, but their relationship was more through their families than anything, and Emerald doubted she would be able to handle the other girl in close, constant quarters.

She ruled out Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie as well- she’d seen them that morning, and doubted anyone would be able to come between them even if they _didn’t_ manage to rig their landings like they’d planned. Jaune Arc was also subsequently thrown off the table; she suspected his partner would have to carry him and she wasn’t about that. Ruby Rose? By now everyone knew about the young girl who’d managed to get moved ahead two years to come to Beacon early- something about stopping a robbery, though Emerald hadn’t been able to learn the details. Emerald ruled her out too. The girl seemed nice enough, but entirely too loud. Her sister was removed just as quickly- she’d seemed even _louder_. Emerald didn’t like loud people.

Pyrrha Nikos, now. Emerald considered her thoughtfully. Powerful, record-holding, and friendly. She probably wouldn’t be so bad, and Emerald knew she could get far if she had someone like Pyrrha to work with. Then there was Blake Belladonna. Blake was quiet and unassuming, and from what Emerald had seen had seemed perfectly content to sit in silence and read instead of having long, meaningless conversations. A position Emerald could happily get behind.

Emerald ran through the list of her classmates while she fought her way through the bushes, keeping a sharp ear out for anyone. She ran into two other students mere moments later, a girl in a pink dress and a tall girl with blue hair, but they were already paired up and were strolling through the forest like it was a walk in the park. They spotted Emerald and waved.

“Haven’t found your partner yet?” Blue-hair asked. When Emerald nodded, she jabbed a thumb over her shoulder. “Heard some movement back that way. Could be Grimm, could be unpartnered students.”

“Thanks, I’ll try that,” Emerald said, marking the direction she’d said. She shifted her glance to the girl in pink- a good two feet shorter than her partner, with a faint air of contempt to her. She had a parasol open over her shoulder, and dainty light pink gloves, and pompoms on her boots. Emerald shook her head and hurried on, grateful that she hadn’t been paired with pinkie back there. “Better you than me,” she said to herself, wishing luck to blue-hair.

She heard the crashing as she got nearer to it, and it sounded like fighting- she picked up pace. Future partner or not, if there was someone in danger she would help them and live with the consequences. Wasn’t that why she’d become a huntress? To help people?

When she burst into the clearing, though, guns out and ready to fight, she didn’t find the huge pack she’d expected from the noise, and instead saw the silver-haired boy trying to shake what looked like a black pom-pom off of his leg. It had sunk its teeth deep into his shin and was refusing to let go despite his best efforts, which included beating it against a tree and kicking it in the face with his other leg. The whole time he was doing this he was letting out an impressive and steady stream of profanities.

She couldn’t help it. She burst out laughing, doubling over and bracing herself against a tree lest she fall over. Imagine having so much trouble with a mere _Pomm_ , of all things!

He heard her laughing, and turned around. He let out a long, drawn out groan when he saw her, entire body slumping while he turned his gaze skyward. “You have _got_ to be kidding me,” he said, and, “Hey Princess, how about instead of mocking me you come gimme a hand!”

Pomm teeth were sharp and given how hard he was struggling they must be dug in pretty deep. Despite this, he didn’t actually seem to be in any kind of pain- he was more annoyed than anything. She decided she could let him hang a bit and stayed where she was, giggling helplessly for a few moments longer before finally straightening up, grinning with mirth. “Okay,” she said, and made her way over to where he was trying to shoot the Pomm in the face with his greaves. It wasn’t working- everything was too awkwardly placed for that. “Maybe if I pull it hard from behind it’ll let go?”

“It’s worth a shot,” he grumped back, holding out the leg with the Pomm and bracing his hands on a tree.

She caught the Pomm around the middle in both hands and pulled, hard, while the boy fired into the ground with his free foot to push him back. For a short breath it seemed like it wouldn’t work, and then with the sound of ripping fabric and grinding metal, the Pomm came free. Emerald fell one direction while the boy shot back in the other, and the Pomm went sailing into the air, growing nervous as it went, a bit of the boy’s pant leg still clenched in its teeth.

“Aww man,” the boy said, climbing to his feet. “I liked those pants.”

Emerald stood as well, and she could see now why he hadn’t seemed bothered by the Pomm’s teeth. Between knee and boot-top the pants had been ripped away and she could see metal gleaming dully where flesh should be.

He caught her staring and scowled, then turned to storm away without a word. She cringed. And sighed, and made a noise that conveyed her agony to the world, and hurried after him.

Emerald did not consider herself to be a good person. She did, however, strive to at least do good things, in the hopes that it would stick or at least balance out. And while she hated the silver-haired boy, and had no wish to have anything more to do with him, and would rather gnaw off her own arm than be partnered with him for the next four years, she also had seen the way the General kept his own prosthetics hidden, the way he didn’t like anyone to see him, even Emerald, who loved him as much as if he’d been whole. And she knew that while she had only stared out of curiosity, that wouldn’t matter to the boy.

Emerald would probably be a good person if doing good things was easier. Emerald caught up to the boy and fell in step beside him.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “My- my father-” She faltered. It was the first time she’d referred to the General as her father out loud, and the word left her tongue tingling, but in a pleasant, giddy sort of way. She pushed that aside and decided to think about it more later. “My father has prosthetic limbs,” she went on. “I should have known better. I’m sorry.”

He didn’t say anything at first, and Emerald carried on walking beside him. Eventually he stopped.

“My name is Mercury,” he said, and, “Thanks for helping me with that Pomm. I’m pretty sure it futzed my calibrations and I can’t actually feel my right leg anymore.” He kept walking, and this time Emerald noticed that he was limping. “But if I stop to repair them I’ll be a sitting duck if any more Grimm turn up.”

“Well.” Emerald sighed. “I guess we’re… partners… now. I can keep watch while you work.”

He was quiet for a moment, then sighed as well. “Thanks.”

*

It was easy enough for Neo to get to ground- she just opened her parasol and waited to land. It was slower than her classmates, but that was okay. It didn’t matter to her who her partner ended up being, and there was nothing that said she had to be around them outside of classes and training anyway if she didn’t like them. Probably.

When she finally did get to ground, touching down gracefully in the middle of a small break in the trees, she found herself surrounded by lights that danced around her and followed her motions as she stood. As she watched, they clustered and shaped themselves into a shining reflection of her, mirroring her movements. She looked around, and saw a boy in a yellow bowtie with his hands held up, fingers wiggling. Once they’d locked eyes, he let his hands drop, and the image vanished, exploded in a burst of lights that fell glittering to the ground. She made a soft noise of surprise.

“I’m Thaddeus,” the boy said. “Or just Thad. It’s Neo, right? I saw you floating down so I figured I’d wait for you.” He rubbed the back of his neck bashfully. “I guess this makes us partners now!”

Well, he seemed friendly enough, and she liked his greatcoat and bowtie- they made him look very dashing, though his cane made her think longingly of Roman. She supposed she could live with being partnered with him while she waited for Roman to come back for her, in any case. She took her scroll out of her pocket and typed into it quickly.

_Nice to meet you. How did you do that with the lights? Was that your semblance?_

He looked slightly baffled by her typing, but caught on fairly quickly when she held her scroll up to him. He nodded. “I was showing off a little,” he admitted. “I wanted to impress you. Were you impressed?”

_It was pretty._

“Good! I like pretty things. Can you not speak?”

_No._

“Ah.” He pursed his lips, then shrugged. “Well, we’ll sort something out, then, typing everything is probably a real pain. Let’s head to the temple now, okay? We can brainstorm communication back at the school.”

Neo nodded rather than type a response, and the two made their way through the forest. Thad had a compass in one of the pockets on his greatcoat, and after a few minutes of stumbling around in the undergrowth they found a path that pointed more-or-less northwards. They followed this, Thad speculating on what kind of relics they might find at the temple as they went. Neo didn’t have much input- he sounded like he was just talking to fill the silence anyway, and didn’t expect a reply.

Suddenly, Neo whacked out with her parasol, stopping Thad abruptly. He gave her a quizzical look, but she pressed a finger to her lips and tapped her ear- _Listen_ \- and understanding dawned as he heard the rustling, the growls, that were approaching. Grimm. Without a sound, they prepared to fight; the blade shot from the tip of Neo’s parasol while Thad gripped his cane in a fighting stance.

“I guess this is the part where we find out how good we are at working as a team,” Thad said. Neo nodded. It was way sooner than she liked. Oh well. She wanted to see how he fought anyway.

*

Mercury found a stump to sit on and folded his leg up over his knee so he could work. Emerald paced the area while he did, listening for Grimm. She didn’t say much- she didn’t have much _to_ say. After a while of this, Mercury sighed.

“Do you mind not pacing like that, Princess? It’s making me nervous.”

She stopped, and turned to face him. “Its Emerald,” she said. She hugged her arms around her loosely, and, “I think we got off to a bad start yesterday.”

“Yyyep,” he replied, not looking up from his leg. “I’d say that’s a pretty fair assessment.”

“Well, maybe we can start over. So.” She held out her hand within distance of his. “Hi. I’m Emerald Sustrai. It’s nice to meet you, Mercury.”

He looked up and raised an eyebrow at her, then turned wordlessly back to his leg. “You look like that caused you physical pain,” he said.

“Well at least I’m _trying_!” she snapped. She let her hand fall. “Look, we’re stuck with each other for the next four years. We might as well find some way of getting along. And I don’t care if it’s a four-years spite war to determine who can be the bigger person, but we have to figure out _something_.”

He laughed softly. It wasn’t a bad laugh, she thought- almost pleasant, except for the contempt that laced it. “I didn’t say I wasn’t willing to try,” he said. “Anyway I appreciate that you’re at least honest. I don’t like it when people lie about their motives.”

Her expression relaxed a little. Okay, common ground. She could work with that. “I don’t either,” she admitted. “Don’t pretend you’re just trying to be friendly when you’re networking. Don’t act like you’re acting on the goodness of your heart when you expect something in return.”

“Exactly.” He clucked his tongue and returned the panel to his leg, then stood. “Anyway, I fixed my calibrations but there’s nothing I can do about the dents. I guess I’ll just have to live with having some battle scars. Come on, let’s find the temple. You can help me think of a better explanation than getting bitten by a Pomm while we walk.”

She laughed and fell into step beside him. “If anyone asks just tell them that you were saving a kitten from the Pomm, and I’ll back them up. How _did_ you end up like that, anyway?”

“I futzed my landing,” he admitted. “I landed on the Pomm and it… objected.”

This got more laughter from Emerald, and Mercury grinned. He reached up to brush his bangs out of his eyes only to have them fall immediately back into place; he made a slightly disgruntled noise at this and made no repeated effort to tame them. They fell into a natural silence then, which Emerald appreciated. Mercury had struck her as the type to love the sound of his own voice, but he seemed perfectly content to just shove his hands into his pockets and keep his mouth shut while they sought out the temple.

Emerald made a satisfied smile and clasped her hands behind her back as they walked. Maybe this partnership wouldn’t be so bad after all.

*

They had only been walking a few minutes when they heard the sound of fighting coming from ahead of them. Emerald took off at a run toward it, not bothering to check that Mercury was behind her- he was, though. They burst out of the trees at the same time, and only needed a moment to take in the scene- two of their classmates, bowtie boy and parasol girl, were fighting a pack of Beowulfs. The pair were doing their best to overwhelm the Beowulfs, but nothing they were doing could quite manage. Emerald glanced at Mercury, and he nodded, cocky smirk back in place as they leapt into the fray.

Between the four of them, they made short work of the pack, and soon they were standing panting around the miasma of the dead Grimm as they dissipated, exchanging names breathlessly.

The boy- Thad’s- sleeve had been shredded when he caught a blow from a Beowulf, and Mercury could see the tell-tale glints of silver through the holes. At the same time, he saw Thad’s gaze land on his leg, and the two caught each other’s eye and passed a knowing look between them, a look of shared experience and solidarity.

The four made their way to the temple together, all exhausted and all agreeing that there was safety in numbers. It wasn’t too much farther to the temple- about fifteen minutes of walking- and once they reached it they selected their ‘relics’- chess pieces, as it turned out; the only ones left were the black knights, and each pair took one. Emerald stared down at the piece in her hand, impressed by the intricate detail in the carving.

“Let’s head back,” Mercury said.

*

The teaming ceremony that night was long, dragging on as each group, team name, and leader was announced. Soon they were next though; ahead of them, Hector and Titus, as well as pinkie and blue hair from the forest, were being teamed.

“Hector Vermillion, Mayzie Rouge-Clair, Tisiphone Ianthe, and Titus Verdant,” Professor Ozpin said. “You four chose the black bishop pieces. From now on, you will be Team HMTT-” (He pronounced it Hematite) “-led by Hector Vermillion.”

There was polite applause, and then it was their turn. On the screen, their pictures showed, with their stats and their names, and then their initials were moved into place. M-E-N-T. Emerald saw where that was going right before Ozpin spoke:

“Mercury Black, Emerald Sustrai, Neo Politan, and Thaddeus Goldplum-” (Beside her, Thad cringed and hissed 'It’s Gold _plume._ ’) “-you four chose the black knight pieces. From now on, you will be Team MENT, led by Mercury Black.”

Emerald was a good actor. On the streets of Mistral she’d had to be- you couldn’t con people out of their money if you couldn’t play the right part, after all- and living with the General the past two years she’d had to learn about political acting, and how to act pleasant and charming so that she didn’t make the General any enemies when he was entertaining very important guests. Now she had to use every ounce of that acting ability not to look as horrified as she felt with the knowledge that not only was she stuck with Mercury as her partner, she was stuck with him as her _leader_.

She sighed. It was going to be a _long_ four years.

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Pomm concept](http://gaelfox.tumblr.com/post/138442227941/i-might-have-accidentally-done-a-thing) was created by Tumblr user gaelfox and was used here with kind permission.
> 
> [Team HMTT](http://wyomingsmustache.tumblr.com/post/141682032954/team-hmtt-theyre-not-in-order-cause-we-didnt).


	4. Episode 3: Day One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team MENT gets off to a shaky start. Okay, Mercury and Emerald get off to a shaky start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There was meant to be more but the episode was running so long I decided to go ahead and split it into two parts.

Thad woke far-too-early the next morning to a full bladder and the taste of stale root beer sticking to his mouth. He groaned and reached over the side of his bed, fumbling around on the floor for his coat, which he’d dropped last night right before collapsing onto his bed and passing out. He’d drunk entirely too much root beer at the ceremony the night before, and now that he was aware of his bladder he knew if he didn’t get to a bathroom soon he was going to have a problem.

He did eventually find his coat, shrugging into it and digging into one of his pockets for the black glove that hid his hand from view. He didn’t bother buttoning his coat, though, since his undershirt was fine to hide the strips of metal across his chest, that formed the anchor points of his arm.

Mercury had prosthetics too, though. That had been somewhat reassuring to him, knowing that his team leader would understand. If the team selection process hadn’t been random, he would have suspected that had been by design- but, of course, there was no way Professor Ozpin could have ensured that certain students ended up on a team together. It was good fortune, and he was grateful for it.

By the time he made it back to their dorm, he was awake and ready for a shower- not to mention he hadn’t done his nightly maintenance, and he was pretty sure the battle with the Beowulf pack yesterday had thrown off his calibrations. He reached into his greatcoat with his left hand and confirmed the off calibrations when it took him three tries to find the right pocket that held his tools.

He was still working when the others began to wake up. Emerald was first, stretching out long limbs and yawning. Her shift from sleeping to wakeful was graceful and controlled, far moreso than Thad’s awkward fumbling had been.

“Good morning,” she said, when she saw Thad was awake.

“Morning,” Thad said, glancing up from his arm long enough to give her a cheery greeting. “Pretty early to be awake, isn’t it?”

“Is it?” She checked the time, and shrugged. “I’m still on Atlas time, I guess. Besides, I live in a military household. I actually slept _late_ this morning.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “And _you_ were awake earlier than me, you know.”

“My bladder woke me up and I forgot my cals last night. You’re from Atlas?”

“Yes. Well, Mistral originally, but I moved to Atlas a few years ago.”

They talked for a few minutes longer, until Neo woke up and blinked sleepily at them. _You two make too much noise_ , she typed out on her scroll. _It’s too early_.

“Not that early anymore,” Thad said. “It’s half seven.” He replaced the panel on his arm and returned his tools to his coat. “Anyway, that’s done, and I need a shower.”

“God, same,” Emerald said, while Neo nodded her agreement. They began rummaging for their clothes in their yet-packed luggage. Emerald stood holding hers, and looked over at Mercury’s bed. He was still asleep, wrapped in a tight burrito of blankets and snoring oh-so-softly. “What about our _fearless leader_ here?” she asked. “Should we wake him?”

“Leave him,” Thad said, already halfway to the door. “We’ll wake him if he’s not up by the time we get back.”

“All right.” Emerald threw her towel over her shoulder and paused so Neo could go ahead of her, and the three headed out to the showers on their level.

Thad was hesitant when he got into the shower, but it looked like the other boys on their level had decided to sleep in as well. He let out a sigh of relief and let his clothes fall away. Good. If he could keep this up, shower early in the morning before anyone woke, he should be fine.

*

Mercury waited until the door had clicked behind them to sit up with a soft groan. He kicked his covers to the floor and began rummaging around in them, and then a little more frantically on the floor beside his bed, until he found what he was looking for. He sat up and breathed a relieved sigh. He thought he’d lost one of his binders, which would honestly be awful- not just because it would make it harder for him to pass, but also because they were expensive and he didn’t feel like telling Uncle Qrow he needed more money for a binder so soon after the last one.

He tugged it on quickly and threw on the shirt he’d worn to the ceremony the night before. Now if any of his team came in they wouldn’t see.

He’d have to wait for Thad to get back before he showered, so he began putting his bed back together while he waited, then rummaged around for a change of clothes. Then he sat down to run maintenance on his legs until Thad finally returned.

“Bout time you woke up,” Thad said. “Better get to the showers soon, they’re gonna start waking up soon. Unless you’re less… iffy.. than me.” He nodded toward Mercury’s legs, and Mercury realized Thad had just given him a wonderful excuse to not want to shower around anyone. He returned the panel hastily and stood.

“Shit, you’re right,” he said. “I’ll finish this later, see you.”

He grabbed his clothes and hurried away without a backwards glance.

*

When Emerald and Neo returned from the showers, Thad had his greatcoat lying open on the bed. Open as it was, it was apparent that the inside was lined with pockets, of varying sizes. Neo came over to him and raised a quizzical eyebrow, gesturing at it.

“I keep some useful stuff in my coat,” he explained. “But I can only fit a few things into my uniform jacket so I have to prioritize.”

While Neo watched, he took several items- including his pocket toolkit- from the coat and transferred them to his uniform. He grimaced once they were in place. “Ugh, so lumpy. I miss my coat already.”

Behind him, the door opened and Mercury came in, then closed the door with a soft click and took a deep breath.

“All right, team,” he said. He shoved his hands into his pockets. “We have about forty-five minutes before our first class so I say we take this time to actually get to know what we’re working with here.”

Emerald folded her arms over her chest. “What do you mean, ‘what we’re working with’?”

“I mean weapons, semblances, fighting styles…” He pulled his hands out and ticked off on his fingers while he talked. “Levels of training, expanded training, weaknesses.” They all frowned at that, and he shrugged. “Hey, I don’t want you guys knowing my weaknesses anymore than you want us knowing yours, but if we’re going to figure out how to work as a team we have to know what we need to work around or improve. Also, we need to start learning sign soon, we can’t keep making Neo sit out conversations or keep her scroll glued to her hand. And in battle she won’t be able to talk to us via scroll.”

Neo looked surprised at this statement. She raised her eyebrows before letting her expression soften, touched. She reached for her scroll. _I can teach you._

“Good. We’ll set aside a time for lessons in the evening, in between studying.”

“Are we going to have time?” Emerald asked. Mercury frowned.

“We’ll make time. Now.” He cracked his knuckles. “I’ll start. My fighting style is a lot of kicking, and my greaves have gun barrels in them…”

Emerald fidgeted through the entire discussion as Mercury and then Thad and Neo gave the team a brief rundown of their weapons, fighting prowess, and semblance. She kept hoping to draw the conversation out too long for them to get to her; she didn’t want to tell them her semblance. People tended to not trust her entirely when they knew: even the General, who could see through her illusions, could be a bit leery of them at times.

“What about you, Emerald?” Mercury asked, when they got to her. Emerald stiffened.

“Uh, well.” She cleared her throat. “My semblance is- my semblance…” She trailed off, hesitant, and an idea hit her. She schooled her face into a shameful expression, and turned her gaze away. “…I don’t have one,” she said, casting her eyes downward.

There was a pause from the others, and, “Well… that’s all right,” Mercury said hesitantly. “We’ve got four years to figure it out, right?”

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Thad assured her. “I only figured mine out last year.”

Emerald donned a hopeful look. “You think?”

“Of course!” Thad took a pocket watch from his uniform jacket. “Also, it’s nearly nine, so we should get going, we don’t want to miss our first class.”

“Right!” Emerald hopped to her feet. “Wouldn’t want to be late on our first day!” She grabbed her schoolbag and disappeared out the door, leaving the other three staring after her.

*

Their first class was with Professor Peach, and they made it just a moment before the door closed. They slid into seats beside Team HMTT; Emerald found herself sat beside Mayzie, the girl in all pink. Though she was wearing her uniform now, she still wore the dainty pink gloves she’d been wearing in the forest. She gave Emerald a chipper hello; Emerald cringed. Another one? She should have sat next to Neo.

“Hi,” she said. “It’s Mayzie, right?”

“Yep! Emerald?”

“That’s me.”

“I’m very pleased to meet you, Emerald. I believe my team has the dormitory across the hall from yours. I’m sure we’ll come to be the best of friends.”

She gave Emerald an unnervingly wide grin; on the other side of her, Tisiphone- the tall girl with the blue hair- turned and put a hand on her shoulder. “Dial it down there, Mayz,” she said, and leaned around her to address Emerald. “Hey, I’m Tina. Don’t mind Mayzie here, she’s just really socially awkward.”

Mayzie’s smile got a little bit wider, a little bit stiffer. “Tina, I am not socially awkward,” she said. “Now please stop telling people I am before I punch you in the throat.”

“Meh, you wouldn’t be able to reach.” Tina leaned back in her chair and propped her feet up on the desk. “Now pay attention, we’re here to learn.”

“Yes. We are here to learn, because we are good students and we are dedicated to learning,”

Emerald scooted over, away from Mayzie and- it turned out- closer to Mercury. He raised an eyebrow at her; she let out a soft sigh.

“Suddenly glad I got stuck with you and not Pinkie over there.” (Behind her, Mayzie made a soft strangled noise and Tina murmured something to her that Emerald couldn’t make out). Mercury laughed and set his pen down so he could lean back and stretch idly, then gave her a cocky smirk.

“I knew you wanted me.”

“Aaaand the moment’s over.”

*

Their next class was with Goodwitch, their combat class. They’d all had combat classes before, so this was the easiest one to adjust to. Emerald was selected for the first match, fighting against a tall boy named Winchester, who came out of the locker room in heavy armor when they were sent to change for their match. He grinned down at her.

“I’ll be sure to go easy on you,” he said. “You know, don’t want to embarrass you on the first day of class and all.”

“You wish,” Emerald snorted. She unfolded her sickles and dropped into a ready stance, seeking out his mind with her own. He didn’t notice when she found it, and began feeding images into his mind, letting him see what she wanted to so that each of his swings managed to _just_ miss their mark. No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t land a blow, and she could see him getting more and more frustrated with each failure. She kept this up for a while, toying with him until he was good and wound up and going in for her own attack. She didn’t let him time his dodges right, either, though he did tank a lot of blows before he finally went down like a tree with a low groan.

While the lights came back up, Goodwitch moved in front of the class to address them. Emerald crouched down in front of Winchester, holding out her hand with a smug smile. “Probably shouldn’t have gone easy on me,” she said. He let out a soft growl and let her help him up, dropping her hand as soon as his feet were back under him and limping off to sit with his team.

“That was nicely done, Miss Sustrai,” Goodwitch said. “An excellent display of control. Please take your seat now.”

She did so, while Goodwitch pulled up a feed of their fight. Emerald was pleased to note that the use of her semblance was barely noticeable- from the audience perspective, it just looked like Winchester’s aim was ever-so-slightly off. Someone would have to know what to look for to realize that there was anything wrong.

Emerald wondered if the General would like to see her match. She had already taken some pictures of the school to send with her letter home, why not show him that she was putting his training to good use, too? She decided it wouldn’t go amiss, and after class she told her team to go on ahead while she moved down to talk to Professor Goodwitch about getting a copy of the feed.

“Of course,” Goodwitch said. “Why do you want it?”

“Um, well.” She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “I wanted to put it in the letter I’m sending home to my f-father,” she said. She was looking down, so she didn’t see the sharp look Goodwitch gave her; when she looked up, the other’s face had dropped into a faint smile. “You know, so he can see I’m off to a good start. What?” she added, a little unnerved by the look.

“Nothing.” Professor Goodwitch tapped a few buttons on her scroll and gave a satisfied nod when it dinged successfully. “There, it should be in your scroll now. And,” she added, voice shifting into a less formal tone, “I’m sure James will enjoy seeing how you’re getting on.”

Emerald looked surprised. “You know him?”

“He’s an old friend.”

“I better be on my best behavior then, I guess,” Emerald said, giving Goodwitch a nervous smile. Goodwitch just chuckled softly.

“I should hope you’d be on your best behavior regardless. Now go on- your partner is waiting for you.”

“What?” Emerald glanced toward the door, and headed out with a last thanks. Sure enough, Mercury was waiting outside of it, leaning on the wall with one leg propped up against it. “I told you guys to go on ahead,” she said. “What are you doing here?”

“How did you do that with Winchester?” he said, pushing off the wall to walk beside her.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“I think you do. Look, I’m good at reading people, okay? Movement and expression, that kind of thing? I was watching Winchester during your fight- it’s like he was fighting an opponent that was just a little bit to the left of you. He was always looking just a little bit over” He gave her a very pointed look. She scowled.

“Okay, so?” She folded her arms over her chest. “So he’s got bad aim. That’s _my_ fault?”

“It could be. Look, Emerald, if there’s something you’re keeping back-”

“I’m not _keeping anything back_ ,” she snapped. “And it’s none of your business anyway.”

“As your team leader, I’d say it’s exactly my business.”

She stopped, and then turned to glare up at him. She stabbed her finger at him. “Listen,” she said. “You being team leader does not give you the right to pry into my affairs. _I_ will decide what you _need_ to know, and tell you. Otherwise, you don’t _need_ to know.”

He narrowed his eyes, and batted her hand away. “Fine,” he said. “Just don’t let your attitude get your team killed.”

“Whatever.” She spun on her heel and stormed off. They were supposed to be having a study period right now, but she didn’t feel like dealing with any of them.

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to write an actual battle scene in the next bit and I'm not looking forward to it.


	5. Episode 4: Rough Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emerald calls home. Thad and Neo start an adventure of their own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took a writing break and feel a lot better than I did. I woke up this morning wanting to write, so hopefully I'll start getting updates out quickly again now.

Neo was not studying. She wasn’t the only one- beside her, Thad had made a pair of figures from his lights and was making them fight on top of his book, and a little way down the table, she could see Team RWBY, only two of whom were studying.

It wasn’t what she’d expected of Beacon- she’d assumed, given her own experience with hunters and the things Roman had said, that she would be surrounded by goody-goody children who devoted all of their time to studying and training. Instead she found herself surrounded by… children. Children with weapons and powers who were learning to destroy monsters but still, underneath all that, children.

She wondered if Roman had known that when he sent her here.

Mercury was fuming when he joined them. Thad’s figures vanished in a burst of glitter and they both looked at Mercury questioningly. He pushed his bangs out of his eyes. “It’s nothing,” he said. “Just arguing with Emerald.”

“It’s just your luck you got a partner who hates you,” Thad said. “You guys need help?”

“No, I’m sure we’ll figure something out. It’ll be fine.” He turned his attention to Neo. “So about those sign lessons,” he said, effectively shutting down the conversation about Emerald. “How does after dinner sound? I know it’ll put us late showering and getting to bed at night, but it won’t hurt anything.”

_And it’ll mean you and Thad don’t have to shower with the other boys_ , Neo typed, giving him a flat, knowing look. Mercury rubbed the back of his neck, while Thad suddenly became very interested in his notes.

“Well… there is that,” Mercury agreed. “So does that sound okay?”

_Yes_.

“Good. I’ll let Emerald know later.” He grabbed his book and pulled it to him. Thad raised an eyebrow.

“Maaaybe you should let one of us tell her,” he said. “If she’s mad at you, that is.”

*

Elsewhere in Vale, in a small rented office that one would not expect to be put to any shady purposes, two women were talking. The one was looking rather bored, flicking a lighter off-on, off-on, while the other watched her closely, calculating. It was necessary for the latter woman to tread carefully with the former, as the former would know in an instant if she attempted deceit. She could not afford to alienate her allies, not yet anyway.

“How much longer do we have to wait?” the first asked, turning her gaze on the other. The other smiled.

“For the plan? That will not come to fruition until the tournament. But as for phase one, I believe I can speed it up. I’ve found someone who will be able to help the robberies along. He’s _very_ good at what he does.”

“You’ve hired him already?”

“No. I’m going to meet with him tonight. But I wouldn’t worry. I know how to control him.”

“How?”

“Hmm…” The second woman gave a chilling smile that lit a fire in her golden eyes. “Let’s just say… my people are in place to ensure that I have the right leverage.”

*

Neo and Thad left the library together, and were immediately joined by another girl, only a bit older than them. She had gold earrings and bangles, bracelets and armlets and anklets, and thick gold rings hanging from each heavy braid: they stood out beautifully against dark, dark skin and hair and brought out the almost golden shade of her brown eyes.

“Hi,” she said, falling in step on the other side of Neo. “My name is Umbra.”

“Hey,” Thad said. “I’m Thad, and this is Neo.”

Neo gave a small wave; Umbra smiled at her in greeting and turned her attention to Thad. “I saw your little light show in the library earlier,” she said. “That’s your semblance, right?”

“Yes, I-”

“Let me ask you something,” she said, before Thad could say any more. “What happens if you combine your lights with Dust?”

Thad stopped suddenly, a stunned look on his face. Neo and Umbra stopped as well, and turned to look at him. “…I don’t know,” he said. “I’ve never thought to try.”

Umbra giggled. “I thought as much. Come to the ballroom after supper tonight, okay? You too, Neo, this is the kind of thing partners shouldn’t be left in the dark on.”

“What?”

“I have to get to class now. See you later!”

She turned and left, then, without another word. Thad and Neo exchanged bewildered looks.

_What was that all about?_

“I have no idea. Are we going?”

_Up to you. I’d rather do that than deal with Mercury and Emerald, personally._

“…yeah same.” He folded his hands behind his back while they walked, then suddenly stopped and checked his watch. “Shi- come on, Neo, we’re gonna be late for class!”

He took off at a trot, and after a moment Neo hurried after him. She couldn’t go drawing attention to herself by being late to class on her first day.

*

In classes they shared, Mercury and Emerald refused to sit near one another. If Thad and Neo where there they were placed between them; if they were expected to sit with their partner, they both turned away from each other, the message clear: do not talk to me. After their final class of the day let out, the two went in separate directions, leaving their teammates standing outside the classroom door. Thad gave Neo a tired look.

“Do you think maybe we should intervene and try to get them to talk to each other?”

_Does this look like an episode of Our Small Horses?_

A blush colored Thad’s cheeks, clashing horribly with his freckles. He suddenly became very interested in his hands. “Well. I mean. That’s what Glitter Dusk would do.”

Neo stared, and then, _Oh my god are you a brorse?_

“No!” His blush spread. “I mean… I guess technically I am but the word has negative connotations so I don’t like to use it. I just like the show, that’s all. Anyway that’s not what I meant about helping them. I just mean… you know, Mercury and Emerald are our teammates. Our friends, maybe. How are we supposed to be a team if two of our team can’t even talk to each other?”

There was a long silence while Neo considered this, then sighed. _Let’s give them space today and see if they work it out on their own. If they haven’t sorted themselves out by tomorrow, then we can try intervening._

Thad nodded. “All right. We can go later and see what Umbra wants, and since we’ll be away they’ll have the dorm to themselves to talk.”

Privately, Neo suspected they wouldn’t take the chance to talk, but she didn’t say, and joined Thad on his way back to their dorm. She wanted out of this uniform and back into her real clothes, and she suspected Thad wanted his greatcoat back, given how he kept fidgeting and touching his uniform jacket irritably.

Of course, Neo could always just use her semblance to make her _seem_ to be in uniform, but it was too much trouble to keep it going all day if she didn’t have to. It was tedious enough keeping the pink half of her hair and her pink-white eye colored brown all day, adding her clothes to the list would be more of a pain than she was interested in.

*

After classes were over, Emerald went for a walk rather than risk going back to their dorm and running into Mercury. Her feet brought her to the school’s CCT tower, and she stood outside staring at it for awhile before sighing and heading inside. She wanted to talk to the General- a hundred times that day she’d found herself wishing she was home, that she’d just gone to Atlas like they’d both wanted and dealt with the consequences.

It took a few minutes before the connection came through on the other end, and it was Winter, not the General, who answered. Her face was stern, aloof, but it softened a touch when she saw it was Emerald.

“Hello, Emerald,” she said. “Are you calling for General Ironwood?”

“Yeah. Is he around to talk?”

“He’s in a meeting right now,” Winter said. “He won’t be free for approximately another hour. Would you be able to try again then?”

“I can’t, it’s dinner in an hour. It’s nothing really important,” she added, turning her gaze to her hands. “I just wanted to tell him how my first few days at Beacon were going. That’s all. If he’s too busy…”

On the screen, Winter pursed her lips for a moment, then stood. “Wait there.”

She vanished, and Emerald heard a door open in the background. A minute later, the General appeared in the frame instead, eyes soft and warm as he looked at her.

“Hi Emerald,” he said gently. “Winter said you needed to see me?”

“What? No, I-” She fidgeted, hunching down a little. “I didn’t mean to pull you away from your meeting, I just called to see if you could talk. Don’t let me interrupt your work…”

His eyes crinkled when he smiled. “We’ve been holed up for an hour and a half without stop,” he said. “We decided to take a short recess, so I have-” He checked his watch. “-ten minutes before I have to head back.”

“Oh.” She looked pleased. “I really only wanted to see you. I’m kind of feeling a little homesick…”

He looked surprised at that, and then his face relaxed, and a little bit of his usual stiffness fell out of his shoulders. “Well that’s- that’s to be expected,” he said. “Apart from that, how are you settling in?”

“Okay? I guess?” Her shoulders sagged. “Except that I got stuck with a partner I hate who is also my team leader and I’m afraid to tell my team what my semblance is because I know they’ll never trust me and also I’m pretty sure everyone else on my team is hiding something too and I don’t know anyone here apart from Weiss and you know how Weiss is, and I’m just… really, really tired.”

He listened while she poured this out; she was clearly frustrated, and when she’d finished, a small smile tugged at his lips. “Feel better?”

“A little.” She drooped. “What am I supposed to do about Mercury? He’s such a…” She huffed and made a motion with her hands like she was strangling an invisible person. “…such a _dick_.”

“I’m sure he is,” the General agreed. “But if you truly want my advice, I would suggest you keep trying. I’m sure you and Mercury have more in common than you think, and partnerships take work. Tobias and I didn’t hit it off immediately either, back when we were first partnered. In fact we hated each other as much as you and Mercury seem to.”

“Really?” This was news to her- he and Dr. Steele were such good friends now that it was hard for her to imagine any time when the two had not gotten along.

“Really. But we kept at it- and he became one of the truest friends I’ve ever known. And even if you and Mercury don’t develop a bond as good as ours, I’m sure you can still find some common ground and learn to work together, for the good of yourselves and your team.”

Emerald sighed. “You’re so sure. I wish I was.”

“Give it time. You’ll see.” He glanced away as Winter’s voice sounded in the background, and then turned her warm smile back to her. “I have to go back to my meeting now. Take care, Emerald. I’ll talk to you again soon.”

“Okay. Bye, General. Thanks for.. well, trying.”

His eyes crinkled again at his smile, and then he was gone. Emerald sat back in her chair and looked around. She was suddenly feeling lonely again.

Mayzie was two chairs away from her, talking animatedly to an older gentleman on the screen. Emerald smiled. She seemed a lot less awkward now than she had that morning. Maybe Mayzie was one of those people that just took time to get used to people.

*

None of his team were in their dorm, so Mercury wandered down the hall to visit Ruby and Yang. Ruby wasn’t there but Yang was, with her partner, the creepy girl with the bow. He was going to leave, but Yang persuaded him to hang out for a bit, so he sprawled on the bottom bunk across from the pair shared by Yang and Blake- after questioning the wisdom and safety of said bunk beds- and explained his problem with Emerald.

“I’m sure she’s keeping something from us,” he said, eventually.

“Yeah, because _you’re_ an open book,” Yang replied. “There’s stuff you’re keeping from her, too.”

“So? I’ve got a good reason. She doesn’t need to know that stuff.”

“Well, maybe she thinks you don’t need to know whatever it is she’s holding back, too.”

“Yeah, but what I’m holding back is personal and what she’s holding back clearly has to do with her fighting style. If I don’t know the details of her fighting style then I can’t plan for us as a team. It’s different.”

“Not to her,” Blake said. “Maybe instead of trying to find out what she doesn’t want to tell you, you find out what she _is_ willing to tell you instead.”

Mercury folded his arms. She was right. He huffed. He hated when people were right.

He didn’t stay much longer, heading out in a sullen mood just as Ruby was getting back. She looked down, and only gave him a distracted hello before climbing up to her bunk and pulling the blanket closed so they couldn’t see her. Mercury raised an eyebrow at Yang.

“We’re having our own team problems,” she said. “Now go sort out yours.”

*

Mercury left dinner early, hoping to shower and change while the other boys were still in the dining hall. When he got back to the dorm he was surprised to find Emerald there, curled up on her bed with her scroll open, typing. He stood awkwardly in the doorway for a moment, then moved over to his trunk to grab his clothes.

“What are you doing?” he asked, and added, “Assuming that’s not prying, I mean.” It came out harsher than he’d meant it to. He frowned.

“I’m writing a letter home,” she said. Her tone was rough- he wondered if that was in response to his own. She sat up and stretched. “What about you?”

“Felt like getting a shower early,” he said, holding up his clothes. “You know, before everyone else got back. So I could have some privacy.”

“Well, don’t let me stop you,” she said, turning back to her letter.

“Right.” He moved over to the door, but he hesitated and closed it rather than leave. He turned to her; she looked up from her letter and raised an eyebrow at her. He took a deep breath. “I’m… sorry, okay?” He brushed his hair out of his eyes. “About prying, I mean. Obviously you’re not comfortable sharing, and I should have respected that.”

She looked up and they were both silent while she considered his apology for a long breath before giving him a small smile. “You look like that physically pained you.”

He smirked at that. “I’m not good at apologies, Princess. Truce?”

She nodded. “Yeah. Truce.”

She went back to her letter then, and Mercury headed to get his shower, feeling in much brighter spirits than he had before.

*

Elsewhere in Vale, in a dingy apartment that one would absolutely expect to be put to shady purposes, Roman narrowed his eyes at the woman currently standing in the middle of his apartment like she owned the place.

She may well own the place, actually. Roman hadn’t checked whose apartment he was ‘borrowing’ while Junior made the necessary arrangements for him and Neo to disappear. But he was usually a lot better about knowing when the landlord was on their way to a place he was 'borrowing’ when he hid out, and getting away before they got there.

She didn’t look like the landlord. He pulled a chair out and spun it around before dropping into it, propping his feet up on the table and leaning back, eyeing her up with a cocky look, like he was the one who owned the place.

“You know, my dear, there are better ways to get my attention than breaking into my apartment. Is there a _reason_ you’re here?”

“Roman Torchwick,” the woman said. He straightened up a little- there was something about her voice, it sent chills up his spine and put him on edge. He narrowed his eyes. “Oh, don’t be like that,” she went on. “I came here to make a proposal.”

Roman definitely didn’t like that voice. He had known people with voices like hers in his time, and they never spelled good for him. He didn’t know what she wanted him for, but he already knew he had no interest in doing it. He forced his face into a semblance of a smirk.

“Sorry, sweetheart,” he said. “But I am in fact already spoken for. My heart belongs to another! I’m flattered, of course, but I’ll have to turn you down. No hard feelings.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m so sorry,” she said.

He didn’t like that. People like her, in his experience, did not apologize. His own eyes narrowed. “Sorry for.. what?”

She smiled. “I’m sorry I gave you the impression you had a choice.”

“You think you can force me to help you?”

“Yes.”

She paced the room idly, studying her nails rather than looking at him. He tracked her movements, but didn’t change his position. He’d worked with people like her before, yes- it was ninety percent game, every time. Put on the show, make them think you’re bigger than them, can bite harder.. but always, always, it was just a show. That something about her gripped his spine like an icy hand meant nothing.

“Sending your partner to Beacon wasn’t the safe move you expected it to be,” she finally said. “It’s very dangerous at Beacon, you know. Anything could happen… accidents happen when you fill a school with children with weapons, after all.”

He put both feet on the floor. “What do you think you’re talking about?”

“Me? Just speculating about whether your partner will _really_ be as safe as you want her to be, at Beacon.” She stopped pacing and turned to him, a smile on her face. Roman didn’t like that smile. That smile was not just a show. “So about my proposal…”

She was bluffing. She _had_ to be bluffing. Neo was fine- there was nothing this woman could do to her, not really. He leaned back again. Two could play this game. “Well,” he said, “Since you put it that way, what did you have in mind?”

“Oh, just a few robberies.” Her smile grew brighter, and yet colder at the same time. “I need a great deal of Dust at my disposal, and you’re _very_ good at stealing Dust.”

*

Thad and Neo went to the ballroom after dinner. The place was dark when they went in- Thad tried flicking the lights on, only to find them dead. He and Neo exchanged confused looks, and Thad brought his hand up, summoning several flares of light into being, spreading them out to coat the room in a dim glow. Neo tapped something onto her scroll and held it up to him, keeping her eyes on the shadows as he read.

_Do you think this was a set up_?

“I don’t know,” he murmured. “But I don’t like it.”

_Me either. Can you make more light?_

“I’m trying,” he said. “This place should be lit up like it’s daytime.”

Even as he said it, the shadows that he’d been failing to dissipate began to shift and move, curling around the room like mist, gathering in the center until they began to take shape. Thad reached for Neo’s hand, taking a slow step back and pulling her with him, but even as he did the ballroom doors slammed closed behind them. He jumped, yelped, and glanced around behind him. He and Neo met each other’s eyes again, and he gulped.

“Now I _really_ don’t like this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Umbra](https://41.media.tumblr.com/943d4ad16780e57dd1c5801df211a43a/tumblr_o1ky19lDSg1up77gpo2_500.png)
> 
>  
> 
> Not relevant but the older gentleman that Mayzie was calling was her grandpa.
> 
> Since Emerald apologized the first time, I figured it was Merc's turn to put on his big girl panties and just do it.


	6. Episode 5: Scavenger Hunt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mercury and Emerald crawls slowly towards friendship, if friendship is defined by "not hating each other".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is unedited because I'm in a bad mood. I'll fix it later.

Thad let go of Neo's hand and the two held their weapons at the ready, moving to stand back-to-back as the shadows moved and writhed through the room. The lights Thad had placed around the ballroom blinked out even as more appeared surrounding the two, creating a halo around them that did little to dissipate the shadows that now filled the entire ballroom.

“How in the world do we fight shadows?” Thad asked; against his back, he felt Neo shrug. He tried strengthening his lights, trying to push back, and for a moment it seemed to work, but then the shadows just pushed back. A light was absorbed; Thad struggled for a moment but it flickered and died out, and then another followed.

Behind him, Neo swung her parasol in an arc, but it passed through the shadows harmlessly. She and Thad exchanged looks over their shoulders.

“Let's make a run for the door,” Thad suggested. “If we can't touch them maybe they can't touch us.”

Neo nodded, and Thad rushed toward the door; he'd barely gone two steps than the shadow between him and the door reared up like a wave, catching him in the chest and pushing him back hard against the wall. He grunted, and staggered as it pulled back.

“Okay,” he said. “Maybe not.”

*

Emerald was just finishing up her letter when Mercury got back into the room, dressed for bed in a pair of loose pajama pants and a baggy hoodie. He grabbed one of his notebooks from his bag and laid on his bed with his back to her while he studied; she ignored him and grabbed one of her own to do the same. After a long moment, she looked up.

“Where are Thad and Neo?”

“They said they were meeting up with an upperclassman after dinner and they'd be back late,” Mercury said.

“Wasn't Neo supposed to start teaching us sign after dinner?”

“She said she was too tired after everything today so we could start tomorrow.”

“Oh. That's fair.”

They went back to studying, and for several minutes the only sound in the room was their breathing, light and relaxed, the scratching of a pencil on paper or the idle tapping of fingers. Emerald was the one to break the silence again.

“So Ruby and Yang,” she said. “They're your cousins?”

“Sort of,” he said. “I live with my Uncle Qrow, and my Uncle Qrow is also their Uncle Qrow. And we both live with their family. And I call their dad my uncle. So, cousins seems to be as good a word as any.”

“Makes sense.” After a moment's hesitation, she added, “So can I ask why you live with your uncle?”

“I'd prefer it if you didn't.”

There was a touch of frost in his voice, and she took the warning for what it was, and left the subject alone. There was more silence, while Emerald tried to think of something else to ask. Her gaze flickered to his legs, but she wasn't stupid enough to try that route. Instead she glanced at his hoodie, and,

“Aren't you hot in that hoodie?”

He slapped his pencil down onto his notebook a little harder than necessary. “ _Now_ who's prying?” he demanded. Emerald looked a little taken aback by the force of his response, and then huffed.

“I was _just_ trying to get to know you,” she said.

“Well _don't_.”

“ _Fine_.”

She huffed again, and went back to studying, while Mercury did the same after another moment. Emerald sighed, and pulled her letter back up to make an addition to the end.

' _Tried getting to know Mercury so I could find some common ground. Found out he's just a jerk. Will keep trying but hopes aren't high_.'

*

Neo watched impassively as Thad was thrown against the wall. She wasn't particularly concerned- her own illusions were powerful enough to get her past the shadows easily enough. But she wanted to see what would happen, and it probably would count as drawing attention to herself if she left her partner to deal with the problem on his own. So she opened her parasol and batted away at the approaching shadows and pretended to be just as frustrated as Thad when they continued to make no impression.

Thad seemed to be getting frustrated. He was antsy, on edge, and the lights surrounding them were going dim. Neo suspected she'd have to step in and pull him away, soon, but before she could make up her mind a voice said, “That's enough, Umbra, you've seen what you wanted to see.”

The shadows vanished in an instant, and two figures appeared: Umbra, and at her side Ash. Beside her, Thad hunched over on himself, twisting his hands around the handle of his cane.

“Was that some kind of prank?” he demanded. “Because if so, it wasn't funny.”

Umbra looked surprised. “It wasn't a prank,” she said. “Are you okay?”

Both Neo and Thad gave her matching unimpressed stares. Ash hid her mouth behind her hand, while Umbra looked vaguely apologetic.

“I wanted to see what your semblance could do,” she said. “You were never in any danger. I was never going to _hurt_ you.”

“There's more than one way to hurt someone,” Thad muttered. He still had a white-knuckled grip on his cane, but he was at least standing up straight now. He took a hesitant step back. “Let's go, Neo,” he said. “I don't really care what they have to say anymore.”

Neo nodded and followed, falling into step beside him as they made their way through the now-dark corridors out of the school. Thad's lights were back, forming a wide ring around them and washing the whole corridor in their glow. Neo gave him a quizzical look, and he hugged himself. “I don't like the dark,” he said quietly. “I mean hell, that's why my semblance is light.” He shuddered. “Why would she do that? If she wanted to see my semblance she could have just asked. It's not like I mind showing off.”

_I don't know_ , Neo typed. They were near their dorms now; Neo reached up and patted Thad's arm. He seemed to take comfort from that, at least.

*

The rest of the week passed in a slew of ups and downs: Thad bounced back from his scare in the ballroom fairly quickly, though he did insist on sleeping with a light on in their dorm at night, something Mercury objected to on the grounds that it made it hard for him to get to sleep. After two sleepless nights that left him cranky and irritable, he solved the problem by hanging a blanket around his bed that would block out the light. It had taken the other three less than a minute to realize the potential privacy this afforded, and soon all four beds had makeshift curtains around them.

Neo and Thad had been exasperated to learn that Mercury and Emerald had made up only to start fighting again almost five minutes later; when this happened four more times over the rest of the week, the two gave up trying to make them get along. They would just have to live with this state of things, they decided, and instead focused on their own teamwork. They were doing a much better job than their teammates, which pleased Thad and amused Neo, and annoyed Hector and Titus, the first victims of their combined efforts. The two had limped out of Goodwitch's classroom after their first beating, complaining loudly to and unsympathetic Tina and Mayzie.

On the second night Neo started teaching the other three how to read sign, which she assured them wouldn't be hard once they got the hang of it. By the end of the first week they could stumble their way through half of the alphabet and a few basic words, though Neo had to go slowly for them to understand even those basic signs. It was a start, though.

Their last class on that first Friday they had a scavenger hunt; Professor Opal gave them all their list of clues and sent them off onto the grounds with their partners to follow them. It was meant to be a partnership exercise, so in the courtyard, after comparing their lists of clues, Team MENT parted, with Mercury and Emerald heading in one direction for the lake and Neo and Thad headed up to the tower instead.

“I can see why Opal became a huntress instead of a poet,” Mercury said, grimacing at some of the clues. He read off the first one. “'Sand settles below me while lights glitter overhead, if you take me from in between them you'll surely spell my death'. It doesn't even rhyme!”

“It rhymes a little bit,” Emerald said. “Is it supposed to be a fish?”

“Of _course_ it's supposed to be a fish,” Mercury snapped. “What else? An octopus?”

“Well I mean technically-”

“Emerald, I am ninety percent certain it's not an octopus!”

“It _could_ be an octopus!” She folded her arms. “Anyway, what does it matter? Does she expect us to go fishing? I hate fishing.”

“She wouldn't,” Mercury said. “I mean... would she?”

“I don't know. I've heard things about Professor Opal.”

“Well so have I but I mean...” They exchanged uneasy looks. Mercury shook his head. “Let's just go down to the lake and see. Maybe there'll be some extra clue when we get there.”

*

There were no additional clues at the lake. They stood side-by-side, staring out at the water.

“Does she seriously expect us to catch a fish and carry it around with us the whole time?”

Mercury didn't answer; he was taking off his boots and rolling up his pant legs, so he could wade out into the shallows. There was a post sticking out of the water, with a rope tied around it. The rope disappeared into the water, and judging by the tautness, there was something on the other end. Mercury hauled on it until a net came out of the water, dripping wet and wrapped around a colorful plastic bundle. Mercury stared at it for a moment, then burst out laughing.

“Hey Princess, come take a look at this!”

Emerald huffed, and waded out after him (she was glad her chaps and boots were waterproof). When she got closer she realized why he was laughing: the net held several brightly colored plastic fish- among other marine animals, including an octopus. Mercury handed Emerald the net and made her hold it while he rummaged around in the bundle for the octopus, then tied it back and dropped it back in the water.

“Come on, let's get back to shore,” he said, shoving the octopus into her hands. “I'm gonna get sand in my joints and that's a bitch to clean out.”

Mercury's pantlegs had unrolled themselves about halfway to the post, so now his pants were soaking wet up to the knee. He grumbled and tried to wring them out, then grimaced. “I gotta unzip these,” he said. “Let me know if someone is coming.”

“Whatever,” she said, and turned around to watch the path approaching the shore from the cliff. She heard the sound of a zipper and then water hitting the sand as he wrung out his pantlegs. In the distance, there were two figures approaching, Cardin Winchester and his partner- Sky Lark? She wasn't sure. “Winchester's coming,” she said. “Better get those back on quick.”

Behind her, Mercury swore softly, and she heard him trying to struggle into his pantlegs quickly- and then she heard the heavy 'thwump!' as he overbalanced and toppled over, and swore again. And then Winchester and his teammate (this close she thought it might be Thrush, actually) were on them, and if Mercury didn't get his pantlegs back on soon-

Winchester's mind was easy to find- she'd toyed with it enough times in the past week that she could probably find it even without trying, now. His partner was a bit harder to get; she'd never had to do anything with it before, and she was already putting her focus on Winchester as it was. It took all of her concentration, but as they approached, all they saw was Emerald standing on the beach while Mercury adjusted his greaves on the ground behind her.

“Hey Mercury, hey Emerald,” Lark (Bronzewing?) said, as they approached. Mercury appeared at her side, eyeing them both suspiciously (she wiped that out of her illusion; as far as they were concerned, Mercury had finished adjusting his greaves and given them a passive wave).

“Hey guys,” Emerald said. “Come on, Mercury, let's go find our next clue.”

“What?” He twisted around to watch Winchester and Lark looking around the beach, and then hurried after Emerald, already halfway back to the cliff. She was holding her head; there was a migraine forming in her temples, even after only a few minutes. He gave her a concerned look. “Emerald? What's wrong?”

“Just a headache,” she said. “I'll be fine, just don't talk to me for a minute.”

He complied, folding his arms and watching her with pursed lips while they headed back up to the courtyard so they could figure out their next clue. Once they were stopped, though, he gave her a very pointed look.

“What?” she asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because,” he said. “I believe- for a long list of reasons- that Winchester and Thrush have no idea what they just saw. And I believe _you're_ the one I have to thank for that.”

She half-turned away, dismissing that with a flippant wave. “Maybe they were just distracted by my stunning good looks,” she suggested. He looked unimpressed, and she glared. “Are you saying I'm not pretty?”

He tilted his head in consideration, then raised his hand and wobbled it. “You're all right,” he said. “Maybe a six.”

“What?! I will have you know I am a ten!”

“Well what scale are we talking here?” he asked. “I was saying out of ten but clearly you're saying... what, out of twenty-five?”

He gave her his usual cocky grin, and she 'hmphed!' and spun on her heel to flounce away, arms folded over her chest and nose in the air. “You're a jerk,” she said.

*

They made it through two more clues before Mercury brought it up again. “Seriously though,” he said. “You did something to those two so they wouldn't see my legs.”

“Why do you care?”

“Yes or no, Princess.”

They stared each other down for a long moment, before Emerald finally threw her hands in the air. “Fine. Yes, okay? I know you don't like people knowing so I made sure they wouldn't. Big fucking deal.”

“Thank you.”

“What?”

She raised her eyebrows at him; he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and looked away, embarrassed. “Just- I don't- you know.” He kicked at the ground. “Right?”

“Use your words, Mercury.” She folded her arms. “What are you trying to say?”

“Just that...” He kicked the ground again, became suddenly very interested in the cloud of dust he'd kicked up. “You know, I appreciate it. What you did. Whatever you did.”

She grinned, smug. “There, now was that so hard?”

“Don't rub it in.”

*

Five more clues, and they were nearly done. They were also nearly out of time, and had two clues left to figure out.

“Think we'll be penalized for not getting all of them?” Mercury asked. Emerald shrugged.

“We won't get as many points,” she said. “We also have less chance of winning.”

Mercury pursed his lips. “I heard Opal gives good prizes to the students who win her contests,” he said. “But we won't be the only ones to not get everything.”

“Maybe we'll have time.” She held up the paper and read out the last two clues. “'Green on top of brown, all the year around, if you look inside, a golden treasure my heart hides.'”

“Maybe it means you,” Mercury teased. “Got any treasure hidden in your heart?”

Emerald just looked unimpressed, and went back to the clues. “'Tick-tock, tick-tock, time is up. Tip-top, tip-top, there's nowhere to go but down.' She didn't even try to make that one rhyme.”

“Well it's better than some of the other clues, at least.”

“Green on top of brown, all the year around,” Emerald repeated, pacing. “That's an evergreen tree, right?” She raised an eyebrow, and he shrugged in agreement. “There's loads of those in the forest, there must be something else.”

“Maybe the location is in the golden treasure clue,” he suggested. “A tree with a hole in it?”

Emerald's eyes landed on a cluster of pine trees in at the edge of the forest. She grinned. “A tree with a beehive in it,” she said, pointing. He followed the sight-line.

“Honey?” he asked. “I mean, it's a good place to start. What about this other clue? The clock-tower, right?”

“Time is up? Yeah, that's pretty clearly the clocktower. What's at the top of the tower?”

“Pretty sure that's Ozpin's office,” Mercury said, squinting up at the tower. “Are we even allowed in there?”

“If he's there, I would guess we are.” She frowned. “You want to split up for these last two? Otherwise we only have time to get one.”

“Yeah. I'll go get the honey, you get whatever is in Ozpin's office.” He turned and headed off toward the beehives, before she could protest. She glared after him.

“Thanks a lot, asshole!” she called, and turned fuming to head up to the clocktower.

*

The beehives at the edge of the forest were tended by Aurelius Shale, the school's groundskeeper. Mercury had met him a couple of times; he was friends with Uncle Qrow and Uncle Tai, and stopped by to visit them sometimes. The bees, as far as Mercury knew, were just a hobby for him. He was out at the hives now, and called a cheery hello to Mercury when he approached.

“Hey, Aurelius,” Mercury said. “How are the bees?”

“Buzzy,” Aurelius said. “I just had a new hive split off yesterday.”

“That's cool.” Mercury looked around. “So are any of your hives in trees instead of boxes? Professor Opal has us doing a scavenger hunt, you see...”

“And here I thought you came out here to see me,” he teased. “I don't have any hives in trees, but I got one out of that tree over there when I started- take a look inside, you'll find what you're looking for.”

“Thanks, Aurelius.” He moved over to check, and inside were several small jars of honey. He took one. “I guess that's everything. Now it's up to Emerald.” He waved. “See you! Thanks for the honey.”

*

Professor Ozpin let her in when she got up to his office, which she took as a good sign. He was sat behind his desk, peering at her over folded hands, and he smiled at her as she came closer.

“Hello, Miss Sustrai,” he said. “And what may I do for you?”

“Um... we're doing this scavenger hunt for Professor Opal,” she said, holding up the list. “Our last clue leads up to your office. We think.”

He raised an eyebrow. “We?”

“Me and Mercury. We split up to collect our last two clues because we're almost out of time and I had to come up here.”

“I see.” There was an amused, slightly cryptic smile on his face as he continued to watch her; she clasped her hands behind her back and drummed her toe on the ground awkwardly.

“So, um. Did Professor Opal leave anything up here with you? For the scavenger hunt, I mean.”

“She did.” He reached into one of his drawers and took something out, which he set on his desk in front of him. Emerald strode the rest of the way to him so she could take it. It was a pocket watch, a cheap and very worn pocket watch. “So how are you enjoying Beacon?” Ozpin asked, while Emerald wound up the watch to see if it'd work.

“It's okay,” she said. “Not what I was expecting.” Under his steady look, her skin crawled a little. “I'm a little homesick,” she admitted.

“That's to be expected. But I do have to wonder, why did you come to Beacon? You'd have been guaranteed a spot in Atlas, if you had applied there.”

“And had the General right there to help me with anything I had trouble with,” she said.

He raised an eyebrow. “That's not a bad thing. Headmasters and fathers both exist to be safety nets for the children in their charge.”

“I don't like safety nets,” she said. “I don't like depending on anyone but myself.”

“I see.” He carried on eyeing her over the top of his glasses, making her skin crawl even more. Finally he smiled. “You should run along, Miss Sustrai. That watch is the last time you and your partner need to complete your set.”

“Wh- oh. Right.” She took a few steps back, then turned and hurried to the elevator. She could see now why the General had complained about Ozpin's tendency towards cryptic one-liners.

*

Mercury was just reaching the tower when Emerald got out of the elevator; she added her pocket-watch to the bag with the rest of their items and they turned to make their way back to the classroom. They were joined on the way up by Thad and Neo, who'd managed all but the last of their items- neither had been able to figure out the clue, and they'd run out of time.

In fact, once they got back to the classroom, they found out that of their classmates, only two other pairs had collected all ten items on their lists- Pyrrha and Jaune, and Hector and Titus. As the only three teams who had completed their challenge, they were brought to the front, where they laid out their items on one of the front desks for Professor Opal to inspect. They all fidgeted impatiently while she checked off on the lists, then she reached into her pocket and took out three brightly colored cards.

“What wonderful displays of teamwork,” she said. “So for each pair, a pass for one free lunch-for-two from the Shark-and-Beans cafe. Standard restrictions apply.”

Emerald was closer; she took the pass before Mercury could. Shark-and-Beans was not far from the campus; it was popular with students for both this reason and for the red-string conspiracy chart that covered an entire wall of the dining room. The manager was always adding to this, and could frequently be goaded into explaining his conspiracies, every one of which ended with “because they're aliens”. Emerald had heard of the place, but she hadn't had the chance to visit yet.

“I guess I know where we're having lunch tomorrow,” Emerald said, when she and Mercury were leaving the room once they were dismissed. “Or do you want to wait?”

“Yeah, it's fine.” He looked down at the pass in her hand and sighed. “Too bad we only get one pass to share,” he said. “I could have taken a date.”

Emerald snorted. “Like you could anyone to go out with you.”

“Rude.” He folded his hands behind his head. “I could get a date, easy. Everywhere I go girls practically throw themselves at me.”

“Are you sure you're not just meeting a lot of MMA fighters and getting confused when they attack you? Do you even _know_ any girls? I mean besides your cousins and your teammates.”

“I know lots of girls.” He looked around the crowd of students they were in, and pointed behind him. “I know Nora.”

“Hi.” They both glanced around; Nora gave them a small wave. Emerald rolled her eyes.

“Okay, so you know your cousins, your teammates, and Nora. Even if she did have bad taste, she wouldn't count. She has Ren.”

“Ren and I aren't together,” Nora said hastily behind them. “Just. Just so you know.”

They glanced behind them; a furious blush was working its way up Nora's cheeks. They turned back around.

“Anyway, I could get a date more easily than you,” Mercury said.

“Wanna bet?”

He smirked. “You're on,” he said. “First person to get a date for tomorrow gets the pass. Agreed?”

“Agreed. Rules?”

“They have to be someone we would ask without stakes.” He ticked off on his fingers. “We can't tell them about the bet. We can't ask Neo or Thad. We have to have them by noon tomorrow. All good?”

“Yes.” They stopped and let the crowd of students pass them by, then shook hands. “I'm really looking forward to a free lunch date tomorrow,” Emerald added, when they carried on. “I can think of worse things than lunch with a cute boy. Like lunch with you.”

*

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Insert witty and hilarious ending author's note here or something.

**Author's Note:**

> Find bts activity about this fic [here](http://wyomingsmustache.tumblr.com/tagged/ment-%28rwby-au%29)!
> 
> [Thaddeus](http://41.media.tumblr.com/35fe968003c74fc01f7fd4751ec05e49/tumblr_inline_o2atq80EGp1t7580h_250.png) [reference](http://41.media.tumblr.com/258e0179d4a5f012c65c0b82c6c9410c/tumblr_o3169xImbt1up77gpo1_400.png).


End file.
